


Averted Aversion

by ElizabethWilde



Category: Bloody Roar
Genre: F/M, Family, Fluff, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-21
Updated: 2013-01-21
Packaged: 2017-11-26 07:11:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/647937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElizabethWilde/pseuds/ElizabethWilde
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jenny takes Shina shopping while the girl works to come to terms with the woman's relationship with Gado.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Averted Aversion

"*You're* here," Shina said with obvious distaste, pushing past Jenny into her father's house.

"Yes, I am. How sweet of you to notice." Jenny watched Shina stalk into the house and folded her arms across her chest. "He's not here."

The woman whirled, glaring at Jenny. "Where is he?"

"I didn't kill him and dump his body in a ditch, so don't give me that look. Alan went out to get us some food. It had reached the point where we were going to actually have to consider cooking." Jenny wrinkled her nose. "That would have been bad. I know I can't cook, and I still remember the last time he tried... I didn't even know you could burn spaghetti."

Impatient barely began to describe the look on Shina's face. "When will he be back?"

Jenny shrugged. "I would imagine when he's finished shopping." She tilted her head to the side. "Aren't you supposed to be out on a mission or something? Alan said-"

"I finished."

"Oh." Changing tracks completely, Jenny examined Shina's clothes with obvious distaste. "Have you ever thought of wearing something other than camo pants and a tank top? Ratty ones at that..."

"It's all I own."

"Oh, come on, you must-"

"It's all I have." Shina grabbed Jenny's arm and pulled her down the hallway toward her room. Once they got inside, Shina jerked open her closet door and pointed inside. On one side were various pairs of camo pants, on the other an array of tank tops. There were three pairs of combat boots on the floor and a few handkerchiefs in a pile in the corner.

"Oh my God. How do you live like this?" Jenny stepped inside the closet, picking up the handkerchiefs. Spotting a flash of pink entirely foreign to everything else in the closet, she dug a bit deeper, finally pulling out a frilly, lacy pink dress that looked like it might fit a small child. "Your father bought you this." Jenny turned, holding the dress up for Shina to inspect, though there was really no need for confirmation. The fact was obvious.

"Yes."

"Wanted you to be more feminine?"

"Yes."

"He didn't ever do it again, did he?"

"Not once." The smile on Shina's face displayed pure, unadulterated satisfaction. 

Jenny stood again, throwing the dress back into the corner and squaring her shoulders. "We're going shopping."

Shina frowned in confusion. "I thought you said dad was already-"

"Not for food, Jane, for-"

"Don't call me that."

"Eh?"

Shina glared daggers at the woman in front of her. "Jane. Don't call me that. Ever." 

"Oh. Whatever. Anyway, we're going to go buy you some clothes. This," she gestured to the contents of Shina's closet, "just isn't going to cut it."

Without thinking, Shina took a step backward, panic in her eyes. "Nuh-uh. I don't shop unless I need food. Or weapons."

"Oh, c'mon, it won't hurt you. I know where your dad's credit card is," Jenny added with a wink, disappearing from the room only to reappear with a rectangle of plastic in one hand. "Here we go!"

"I don't think-"

"It's not going to kill you," Jenny said impatiently, raising an eyebrow. "Not scared, are you?"

Shina's back stiffened slightly, but in truth, she was terrified. "Course not. Just had other plans."

"Going to press your camo pants?" Jenny asked sarcastically, grabbing Shina's wrist and walking toward the door. "Come on, no excuses. It's silly for a grown woman not to own anything but camo pants and tank tops no matter what her line of work is."

"But-"

"We're going."

********************

Jenny glanced back at her companion, rolling her eyes when she saw Shina staring at the storefront as if the mannequins were going to come to life and slaughter her. "There, there, dear. I assure you-they aren't alive." Smirking at the glare she received, Jenny put a gentle hand to Shina's elbow and guided her into the store. "It's honestly not so bad. The fear will fade quickly, I promise."

"I'm not af-"

"Of course not, dear," Jenny agreed absently, cutting her off with a wave of one manicured hand. "Now, let's see... No skirts, of course. You'd be uncomfortable, and there's no sense in wearing clothes that aren't comfortable."

Shina eyed the woman skeptically while she searched the racks. //Comfortable? That getup she's wearing can't possibly be comfortable...// 

Catching Shina's stare, Jenny smiled. "What's comfortable for one person is torture for another." She ran a hand down her lace-up blue blouse and tight black skirt. "This suits me. It would *not* suit you. I have wonderful instincts with things like this." Turning away again, she continued her search while Shina hung back, impatient and uncomfortable among the sea of clothes. The woman returned with an armful of clothes after what seemed to Shina like an eternity of searching. "Voila! I know you'll like at least some of these. It's harder to judge since I've never seen you in anything but the camos and whatnot, but... I think they'll do nicely." She thrust the pile into Shina's arms and ushered her into a dressing room. "Try them on, then come out and show me."

Shina, alone in the cramped, vaguely cluttered room, felt strangely cut off. It was almost like a strange type of solitary confinement. A few garments from the last patron already hung from the hook, so Shina pulled them down, throwing them on the floor and replacing them with Jenny's selections. A strange triangle of hard, wood-like plastic in the corner constituted what the merc assumed was a seat of some sort. She scowled at it for a moment, then pulled off her street clothes and threw them onto the platform, assenting silently that it was indeed useful for something. 

Grabbing the first item, Shina found herself staring at a surprisingly tasteful black blouse, simple in style with a scoop neck and extra short, t-shirt like sleeves. //Not bad.// She pulled the shirt on, and the fit was perfect. //The bat's not a complete moron.// Pushing another shirt aside in favor of bottoms, Shina found a pair of stretchy pants that were a little fuzzy and covered in a snow leopard print. //How... tacky.// Sneering, she put the pants on, almost laughing aloud at how odd her reflection looked. Obeying orders, she opened the flimsy door-realizing belatedly that the lock hadn't caught in the first place. "Well?"

Jenny glanced up from the dresses she was examining and shook her head. "Not quite. The top stays, the pants go. God, those are hideous!"

Silently, Shina slipped back into the room and grabbed the next thing she saw that wasn't a skirt. The item turned out to be a pair of loose gray-blue corduroy pants edged with black velvet. //These look... interesting.// She pulled the pants on and glanced up at the mirror, expecting to hate these pants as much as the first. Much to her chagrin, the pants looked good. Very good. The strange pants and semi-tight top looked relaxed but nice, and Shina found herself smiling at her reflection in the mirror. A scowl replaced the expression. //Dammit. It hasn't been thirty minutes and I'm already slipping.// 

Reluctantly, she exited the room again, only to be met by a nearly blinding smile from Jenny. "It's perfect! Those are the ones... Try the others," she ordered almost immediately after. Shina did so, but found every other combination lacking in one way or another. "Maybe we should go and look some-"

Shina growled, holding the bag containing the shirt and pants she had chosen. "No more."

"Okay, okay, no more clothes. But you need shoes. No growling, dammit! Combat boots will look hideous with that outfit. We're buying you shoes. Oh, don't give me that look; it's only one pair. You'll live, Shina." When the merc left off giving Jenny accusatory glances, they entered the nearest shoe store, which, thankfully, was across the hall. "Alright, we want comfortable, sturdy, and not boots. Should be easy enough."

The shoe search lasted almost an hour before the women finally settled on a pair of black semi-clogs with chunky soles, despite Jenny's insistence that the pair of strappy black sandals she had picked out looked better. "Now we can go home," Jenny pronounced, obviously satisfied with the success of the mission.

Shina breathed a sigh of relief. "Finally!"

Smiling sweetly, Jenny merely reminded her, "I could have made you buy accessories too."

"But you wouldn't have lived to see home again."

"Precisely why we're quitting while I'm ahead."

********************

Shina sat down at the table, forearms resting on her knees as she watched Jenny and her father cooking supper. The blond woman stood behind Gado, smiling as she watched him dumping a bag of spaghetti noodles into the boiling water. "Very good, dear. You managed to get through that beautifully."

Gado let out a warning growl, though it was more playful than angry. "Oh, quiet. I'm not that-"

"You burn toast," Jenny pointed out, laying her cheek against Gado's back and snaking her arms around his waist. 

She was forced to shift away as Gado turned around, wrapping her in his arms as well, his grip tugging her close again. "But I look damn good doing it," the man reasoned, smiling, a thing rare and precious in and of itself.

Standing on tiptoes in her high-heeled boots, Jenny placed a soft kiss on the man's lips. "So very true..." 

Shoving away her initial wave of nausea, Shina forced herself to really watch them. She noted the look of happiness on her father's face, the way Jenny's eyes softened as she looked at him. Eyes that could freeze a man with a glance looked warm, loving. They held each other tightly but somehow carefully. There was a gentility and sweetness about the scene, and Shina found herself smiling as well. Maybe it wasn't that disgusting after all.


End file.
